Is it any wonder Newsweek’s circulation keeps dropping?

Check out this fascinating Q&A with “Coraline” and “Push” star Dakota Fanning and you’ll see a small reason why.

Let’s check off the flaws:

• Inane questions? Yes.
• Little knowledge of the subject? No doubt.
• Wasting space with questions which mean nothing to reader. Yup.
• Faux chummy repartee? Mmm-hmm.
• Unnecessary follow-up questions? Of course.

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The next few years will be crucial to talented teen actress Dakota Fanning.

Will she become the next Ron Howard – or Jodie Foster? Or will she be lumped in with the great majority of child actors who couldn’t transition to adult screen roles?

Her latest, “Push,” tries to get a jump start on the next phase of her career.

She plays a girl with psychic powers – she can see the future and make a pretty good sketch from it. She teams up with “Fantastic Four’s” Chris Evans, who can move objects with his mind, to escape the clutches of “The Division.”

That group, led by a bored Djimon Hounsou, is trying to capture them in order to bolster for the government’s defense department.

Or something like that.

Fannings’ character sports a miniskirt and some seriously tall boots, and midway through the film she embraces her first drunk scene.

Kids grow up fast, don’t they?

She’s a good enough actress not to embarrass herself, but she should be ashamed for tackling such a mess of a movie.

“Push” is so frenetic, so packed with noble ideas that simple storytelling is shoved aside (did you really expect me to type ‘pushed?’). Some of those concepts might work in a more coherent film.

It helps that Evans and Fanning make a charming duo, and the fight sequences are momentarily thrilling. “Push” also delivers a level of grit that sets it apart from other mutant films like the “X-Men” franchise.

“Push” is this year’s “Jumper,” an incomprehensible action flick with a few good ideas and a whole lotta lousy execution.

(Photo: Dakota Fanning plays a girl with psychic powers in “Push.” Photo credit: Courtesy of Summit Entertainment)

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If Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie and Jodie Foster aren’t intimidated by Dakota Fanning, they should be.

The young actress is a dynamo, a teen who can act with the authority and screen presence of her much older, wiser peers.

She proves it anew with “The Secret Life of Bees,” which I review this week over at Donne Tempo. The film features other strong performances from the reliable Queen Latifah to the surprising Alicia Keys.

But it’s Fanning’s film, ultimately, and when her character reaches her emotionally boiling point it’s a wonder to behold.

Let’s hope Fanning dodges the Child Actor Curse and blossoms into a brilliant actress. She’s well on her way.

(Photo: Dakota Fanning impresses once more as Lily, the heartbroken girl at the center of “The Secret Life of Bees.”)

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